Currently, students and teachers in non-public schools are not receiving their fair share of funding from the federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) for Title I-A (tutoring services for academically struggling students), or for Title II-A (professional development opportunities for their teachers).

Only the long overdue re-authorization of ESEA can re-establish the full and fair non-public school share.

Congress enacted the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) in 1965 on the “child benefit” principle, which envisioned the needs of all eligible children being addressed regardless of where they attended school. Throughout most of this 45 year history of multiple revisions and extensions to ESEA, Congress has not only preserved this approach but has strengthened and broadened its application. As a matter of fundamental fairness, federal funds which are generated by the count of students in private schools should be used to benefit them and their teachers.